Ticking Clock
by sunsetstargazer
Summary: Genetically enhanced moles underneath New York has just become part of Clint's everyday life but he wasn't expecting to be waking up under thousands of tonnes of concrete and metal, at least he's not alone but he's not sure Tony will be the best company in this situation. How wrong he was to think that.


Ticking Clock

 _A/N Random idea actually inspired by the alternative opening scene for Iron Man 2 weirdly enough, though it has nothing to do with that plot line. And I know this is a bit out of time for the current movies but I wrote it a few years ago and read it to remind me of when they were all still together and not in the current "situation" :'( . Anyway, please read and review, and as usual I'm getting nothing from this but enjoyment._

As the dust settled Clint groaned looking around, the Avengers had been called in to deal with some nut job who had made genetically enhanced moles that were burrowing their way under buildings in upstate New York and bringing them down. All day they had been fighting them and they had finally killed the last of them, the villain himself having been taken into custody by SHIELD, they had been helping with clean up but suddenly an apartment building that they had been evacuating had been found to be unstable because the moles had taken out parts of the foundation. He had got all the civilians out of the way but hadn't made it out of the way in time, Tony had flown in in the suit at the last minute to try and get him out of the way, but he'd been too late, and the building had come down on top of them. Now he is trapped somewhere in the rubble, luckily part of a metal wall had landed above him and the rebar reinforced concrete seemed to be enough right now to keep the small pocket open that he is currently in with Tony.

"Hey, you back in the land of the living Arrowhead?" Tony's asks with barely concealed concern, Clint looks over and sees that Tony crouched next to him still in the Iron Man suit though it is covered in scratches and dents.

"Yeah, just about" Clint says bringing his hand up to touch his forehead feeling a trail of sticky blood down the side of his face, he hisses slightly as his fingers make contact with a cut along the top of his eyebrow about 2 inches long.

"You'll be adding a scar to the collection but J says you should only have a concussion" Tony replies to what Clint had been wondering but had yet to vocalise.

"Great, so what's the plan for us getting out of here?" Clint asked very much ready to get out of here.

"Hey, you mean you don't like it with the right interior décor this could be a really nice space" Tony jokes but the glare on Clint's face coupled with the fact that the face is currently half-coated in blood makes Tony re-think his plan, he folds down the helmet of the suit and looks at Clint. "It's going to be a while, I could blast out of here if it was just me but if I did that everything in here will come down and you will get squished, so the others are working on digging us out, I'm still in contact with them, but your headpiece got knocked out of your ear at some point so I'll have to co-ordinate with them for the both of us." Tony says.

"And how long is that going to take because in case you hadn't noticed we're in a tiny bubble under a lot of rubble that could come down any minute" Clint said getting more irritated by the second.

"At least a few hours, they've got Thor and Steve clearing the way and Nat is directing rescue crews, we don't want to use the Hulk because he isn't known for his precision so Bruce is waiting on the surface to take a look at your head" Tony says.

Clint lets out a huff before shifting himself into a seated position, the area they're caught in is about 4 feet high and a rough 6 feet wide circle, so there isn't much room especially with Iron Man crouched in the middle, but he still wants to get a bit more comfortable. Once he's sat up he moves into the centre to be nearer to Tony the presence of the armour making him feel safer not that he'd ever admit to it.

Tony flips the helmet of his suit back into place probably to talk to the team, and Clint is left alone for now, he looks down at himself assessing whether he has any other injuries that he may not have noticed but is satisfied that for now it just seems to be his head which already seems to have stopped bleeding mostly. He searches through the limited pocket space he has in his vest he finds the small first aid kit and gets out the gauze, which he uses to wipe the worst of the blood from his face. Once he's got the worst of it off he gets the last bit out and some tape which he uses to secure the gauze over the wound to stop any blood that may be still coming out, looking up from what he has been doing he sees that Tony has folded his helmet back down and is watching him.

"What, I always carry this, it's not much but it's come in handy a lot of times on missions" Clint said lifting his eyebrow at Tony but that just dislodges the gauze and he only just catches it as the scab that had formed cracks open and the head wound starts bleeding again.

"I was just wondering if you wanted some help, maybe this?" Tony said looking smug and a panel on the hip of his suit opens revealing various bandages and medical supplies. Clint sticks his tongue out at him, and watches as Tony takes off his gauntlets, and pulls out a roll of bandage and some more gauze before the panel snaps shut. He moves forwards hands up towards Clint in the sign of truce and picks up the gauze from Clints hands using it to wipe away the blood that has trickled down and then presses the fresh gauze against the wound, Clint brings his hand up to hold it in place and Tony wraps the roll of bandage around Clint's head to stop the blood.

"So how do I look?" Clint says turning his head to the side, and smirking at Tony.

"I think it looks good, but Bruce thinks my bandage skills make you look like a mummy but he says it will suffice" Tony says and Clint realises that the others can probably see the live feed of this now from the suit so he waves.

"Bruce, I have to agree with you on that, maybe you give him some lessons later" Clint says winking.

"I think I'll have to" Bruce's voice comes through making him jump but he realises that Tony is putting the coms through the speakers in his suit so Clint can listen in. "How's the head seriously Clint?" Bruce asks, and Clint has to hide a wince at a particularly strong spike of pain running through his head.

"Feels like somebody dropped a building on it, but I've had worse sparring with Nat so it's not too bad" Clint answers honestly.

"Good, we're working on getting you both out so just sit tight for now" Bruce says before a soft click is heard as he disconnects.

They stay sat together like this for almost 2 hours before either of them says anything again, it's Clint who breaks the silence.

"Have you heard anything from them?" Clint says sounding slightly breathless.

"They've got a way to get to us but it's going to take at least an hour and a half to do it and stabilise the rubble as they go so we're still stuck for a while yet, you ok? Do I need to get Bruce back on the line?" Tony says sounding worried but he's still got the helmet on so Clint can't really be sure.

"No I'm good, just tired, I didn't get much time to sleep on the mission this week" Clint says closing his eyes and leaning against Tony slightly.

"Hey, I'm not a pillow" Tony says pushing Clint up again.

"Are you sure you're just tired, no dizziness, headaches or nausea?" Bruce's voice returns to the tiny space and Clint twists around to glare at the helmet which tilts to the side and he can imagine the smirk Tony is hiding behind it.

"m'fine Bruce, told Tony not t'bother you, just sleepy" Clint says leaning into Tony again because he is starting to feel increasingly light-headed.

"Come on bird-brain you don't get to fall asleep, talk to me is it your head?" Tony is asking him while shaking Clint to keep him awake.

"No, head's fine, dizzy but chest feels funny" Clint mumbles and Tony panics at his words, cutting the audio so he can talk to Bruce without Clint hearing he tries to think of what could be wrong.

"I checked him while he was unconscious and there were no signs of injury, what could be wrong with him? J check his vitals." Tony says looking desperately at the man sagged against him.

"Heart rate 120, BP 145/100, Oxygen Saturation 92% Sir" JARVIS replied instantly.

"Tony how big is the area you're in?" Bruce asks out of the blue and though Tony can't think why that would be relevant he gives Bruce a reading in cubic metres of the size of the space.

"Tony get JARVIS to check the air quality, by my calculations Clint has probably already used most of the oxygen, the content is probably down to less than 10% he's asphyxiating" Bruce says sounding as though he's panicking on the other end of the line.

"What, damn it you're right it's down to 9%, how far out are you guys?" Tony asks desperately.

"At our current rate the fastest we can get to you is 45 minutes that'll be too long, Tony your suit has its own air supply doesn't it?" Bruce says. Suddenly it seemed as though the synapses in Tony's mind re-connected and went into over-drive, he had been messing around with making a plan for this sort of thing. He had made a breathing mask that he had intended to use if his helmet ever became damaged when he was in an area where the air was unbreathable, it was still in the early stages of design so wasn't yet able to filter air on its own but he could attach it to his suit's air supply so that he could still breathe even if the rest of his suit is broken. He reached down to the side of his suit and the panel with the first aid equipment opened again and he reached in further pulling out the folding mask and activated it. It immediately unfurled the pieces folding out until it formed a cushioned mask with an extendable metal loop that goes around the back of the head that would form an airtight seal against the wearers face. He pulled a small tube out from the back of his suit at the shoulder that would connect it to his oxygen supply.

Once he had the mask attached to the tube he wrapped his arm under Clint's chest pulling the archer up so that he is resting back against Tony's chest. The man is almost completely limp now and sits against Tony his jaw slack as his breathing becomes faster and more desperate. Not wasting any more time Tony extends the metal loop of the mask around the back of Clint's head and places the cushioned mask over his mouth and nose activating the mask so it locks into place sealing out the useless air that remains in the cavern. Now that he has done all he can Tony extends his legs so that he is sat with his legs out around Clint and the archer slumps completely against Tony taking long deep breaths off the air from the mask.

"Clint, you with me?" Tony asks hoping that the archer hasn't passed out, he can hear Bruce mumbling something on the other end of the line so he knows the rest of the team is probably listening in for the response.

"Unfortunately." Clint mumbles, his voice is extremely muffled by the mask since Tony hadn't put in a microphone yet.

"Hey, I just saved your ass, you could at least praise my awesomeness" Tony said joking on the outside but genuinely relieved to see the archer is ok.

"JARVIS what are his vitals now?" Bruce asks, sounding as though he is trying to keep careful control of his emotions, they may still be in danger of a code green which wouldn't help matters.

"Heart rate 90 BP 120/70 and oxygen saturation 96% and rising Master Barton appears to be almost back to normal" JARVIS replies and Tony hears Bruce letting out a shaky breath.

"Bruce he's fine, I've got him, you guys focus on getting us out" Tony says trying to soothe Bruce.

"Ok, just let me know if anything happens to either of you" Bruce says and Tony makes a noise to confirm he's heard it before he cuts off from the coms again.

"So, Barton this is certainly a bit cosier now" Tony said gesturing to the way that Clint is still sat between his legs. The archer starts trying to get up and move away from Tony probably thinking Tony wanted him to get off but Tony puts his hands on his shoulders pushing him back down.

"The hose I built in is only 2 feet long, it was meant for me to use if the helmet broke but I figured I'd share it with you so you didn't suffocate but it means that unless you want to take your chances we're going to have to stay put" Tony said. The archer huffed and sat back against the chest-plate of the suit.

"So how much air does the suit hold, I'd rather not go through that again?" Clint asked, and Tony realised he hadn't actually thought of that, he'd never thought he'd be trapped anywhere in the suit.

"Umm J" Tony asked his AI nervous of the reply.

"Assuming current air usage by both of you combined I estimate the oxygen will be depleted from the suit in 2 hours, however due to the build-up of carbon dioxide due to exhalation I would estimate only 45 minutes before the air reaches the level of that outside of the suit" JARVIS said and Tony was glad that he had kept that private from the archer, no sense in both of them panicking over this.

"Enough to get us out" Tony says purposefully vague to Clint and if the archer is suspicious he doesn't say anything. Tony connects back to the coms again shutting off the speakers outside the suit so Clint won't hear.

"Bruce, JARVIS says we've only got 45 minutes till the suit is out of air as well, you guys better not have been joking about that time to get us out" Tony says feeling himself beginning to panic.

"I wasn't Tony but that's assuming no complications we are going as quick as we can but it's going to be close, don't worry we're ready on the surface so we'll get you out, you'll be fine" Bruce assures him but the idea that they are preparing for them to be dragged out isn't doing much for his panic. He takes a few deep breaths and he must have shifted too much because Clint is talking to him now.

"What aren't you telling me?" Clint says turning his head to look up at the helmet again. "I can feel you moving around and fidgeting so what is it?".

"Umm so we've got about 45 minutes left till they can get to us but we've only got about 45 minutes until the suits air runs out and we pass out" Tony says realising he can't hide it forever.

"Right, ok, well I guess we should stay quiet and relax or we're going to use it faster, can you play some music through the suit, break up the silence" Clint says before turning back to face away from him and relaxing completely. Tony asks JARVIS to play his usual selection of AC/DC amongst other things, and locks the suit in place so he doesn't have to hold himself up. They both know that their best hope is to use as little oxygen as possible so while they're team is desperately digging to get to them, the two of them relax as much as possible one slumped in the suit and one against it.

"JARVIS display both of their vitals I want constant tabs on them" is the last thing Tony hears before the coms are cut off and he is left with 'Animals' by Nickleback playing in the small cave.

About 20 minutes pass before he starts to feel the effects of it, his mind that is usually buzzing like a hive of bees with a thousand ideas is starting to feel foggy, trying to force it back into action just gives him a headache so he focuses on the music playing, he says each lyric in his head knowing that as long as he's following the song he's still awake and ok. Clint is looking pale behind the red mask so he knows the archer is likely feeling the effects as well, but they're ok for now. JARVIS is still giving him occasional updates but he stopped responding to them after 10 minutes instead opting to flick his eyes around to let the AI know he's awake just conserving as much oxygen as he can.

By the time 40 minutes has passed both of them are panting mouths open trying to get air that isn't there, they're both dizzy and Tony watches as Clint passes out unable to do anything but knows he needs to let them know. Tony speaks for the first time in a while knowing JARVIS will pass it on. "Bruce… now or never… Clint's out… I'm not far off…" Tony says trying to sound calm but it comes out panicked with gasps in between every other word, he's barely got the last word out before he feels himself relax completely, his mind floats and just like that he's joined Clint.

The next thing Tony becomes aware off is shouting, the music has stopped, and he knows that Clint wouldn't be shouting so he doesn't know what's going on. He is out of his suit because he can feel the uneven concrete beneath him that he's lying on, he must be out from under the building but why is he out of the suit. Before he can think further he feels one of the oddest sensations he's ever experienced, his lungs expand taking in air, but it wasn't his own doing, something is being held over his face and is forcing air down his throat into his lungs every few seconds. The feeling makes him panic and he swings his arm up to knock it away but someone grabs his arm forcing it down again, whatever it was is removed from his face as soon as he started moving and he opens his eyes to see Bruce and Steve kneeling next to him.

He tries to ask them if Clint is ok because he knows that the archer had been passed out with a head injury, but he finds himself coughing and gasping half way to a sitting position and Steve pushes him down again while Bruce puts an oxygen mask over his face. Tony flops back not bothering to fight as Bruce flutters about checking his vitals, since he was too busy gasping for air. Once he had calmed down again he was much more careful about getting up, he rolled his head to the side and saw Clint laid out on the floor only a few metres away from him with Natasha and Thor crouched down next to him. The archer seems to be in a similar state to himself but is already sat up by himself so probably doing slightly better than Tony.

"What happened? How did we get out?" he asked looking up at Bruce for answers but it is Steve that replies.

"You stopped replying and JARVIS told us you were both unconscious so we went as fast as possible and JARVIS used your suit to protect you and Clint so that we could speed it up without worrying about you both getting crushed." Steve said looking far too proud of himself.

"When we got to you we dragged Clint out and JARVIS moved the suit and walked you out, it looked rather creepy to be honest, but neither of you were breathing so we got you out of the suit and long story short you are both never leaving the tower again" Bruce said and Tony wasn't sure if he was joking, because Bruce did look as though the whole ordeal had put him extremely on edge.


End file.
